A London photographer who lost both his legs and his left arm when he stepped on a bomb in Afghanistan has said his suffering is nothing compared with that of the country’s thousands of children who receive similar injuries.

Giles Duley, from Clapham, became the most seriously injured British civilian to survive a bomb blast after the improvised explosive device went off in February 2011 while he was embedded with the US army.

Tonight, a documentary tells the story of his recovery and his decision to return to Afghanistan last October to highlight the plight of its 55,000 war amputees despite the fears of his “petrified” girlfriend Jennie Robertson, 27.

“If I was an Afghan and I had my injuries, I wouldn’t have made it,” said Mr Duley, 41, who underwent 34 NHS operations. “I can’t compare my life to theirs and I can’t compare my suffering to theirs. Mine is minimal compared to what they go through. I had the knowledge I would be looked after.”

Walking Wounded: Return to the Frontline is on Channel 4 at 10pm. A free exhibition of Giles Duley’s photographs from Afghanistan is at the KK Outlet in Hoxton Square from March 5-30.